You Owe Me a Son

Desire.

Blaire felt her heart drop once he had agreed with her, she was grateful that he was honest about it, but the idea of more fighting and bloodshed made her feel a type of anxiety she hadn't felt before, at least not for a long time.

She tried her best not to think about it and nuzzled her head gently into the crease of his neck, If there was one thing she had learnt from living through a war it was to enjoy the good times when they come and so far this was as good as it had ever gotten, minus the circumstances.

She looked up at him with a grin and patted him on the shoulder lovingly with an exaggerated look of empathy smothered across her face "aww is that because you know I would beat you..." she pouted for a few moments before finally releasing her laughter.

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Hal smiled at her laughter and lifted his arm from the water to run his fingers through his beard for a moment. "We'll see when we spar.... If I keep you plied with wine I think I have a good chance of beating you." He said as he sat up slowly. "Your over-confidence will be your downfall" He spoke with a laugh before he pulled away from her. That was his way of saying he agreed to come back every two weeks.

Hal stood, grabbed a linen towel from the shelf and climbed out of the bath before beginning to dry himself by the fire, working his way from shoulders down while casting a glance over his shoulder towards her with a grin on his lips. "We'll spar tomorrow, right after you help me fix that roof before it rains."

He wrapped the towel around his waist and collected his clothing from earlier, folding it neatly before setting it aside on the chair beside the bed with his belt. He took the knife from the belt and placed it beneath the pillow before checking the door to the room was locked.

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Blaire kept smiling as he spoke and watched as he pushed himself out of the bath with ease. She let her eyes travel down the shape of his body for as long as she could until the towel ruined her fun and blocked her view.

She waited for him to turn the corner before dunking her head into the water for a few moments and wiping her face as she rose. Things were beginning to feel a lot more comfortable between them and it made her happy, but unsettled at the same time. She knew that Hal was the type of man she could fall in love with which should be perfect as he is her husband after all, but loving someone meant you had something to lose and something to fear.

Once she knew he couldn't see she hopped out of the bath and wrapped the towel around herself tightly, tucking the edge beneath her arm. "Maybe I'll just annoy you so much that you won't even be able to focus when we spar" she smirked laying down on the bed and spreading out her wet arms, knocking his folded clothes onto the floor.

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Hal raised an eyebrow as she knocked his clothes to the floor, his eyes wandering towards her smirk before he turned his attention towards the fire. "Perhaps I will spar naked and distract you." He offered in return with a laugh as he added additional logs to the fire, crouching beside it. "Or perhaps I'll make you spar before dawn, your wine hangover and your temper may get the better of you."

He spoke as he approached the bed, taking care to refold his clothes again. He took the belt and folded it over, tapping it to her nose gently. "Knock my clothes over again and I'll strap you to the bed post." He spoke playfully as he replaced the belt on top of his clothing. With his skin finally dry and the fire set for the night he removed the towel and climbed into the bed beside her, pulling the furs up over the pair.

The pitter patter of rain drops falling against the window beside the bed brought a smile to his lips once more as he laid his head back against the pillow. The drip of water falling through a crack in the roof and the dull thud of droplet after droplet slowly hitting the floor beside the tub broke the silence in the room.

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Blaire narrowed her eyes as he spoke, he was probably right but she could never let him win, they were already 1 - 0 and she was in the lead. "You never know, maybe I'm doing all of this to confuse you. Who knows what the truth is, maybe I don't even like wine!" She teased while gently swaying from side to side upon the bed.

She watched closely as he picked his belongings up from the floor, she could already feel her annoyance sinking in due to his calm exterior, but once again smiled when the leather connected with her nose. "Noted..." she smirked tapping the side of her head.

Blaire bunched up her wet hair and placed it at the top of the pillow to avoid the cold chill it brought to her shoulders. She glanced out the window and then to Hal's smug face "Dont. Even. Mention. It." She warned before turning her attention back to the ceiling. Of course it had to start raining after her tormenting.

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Hal laughed, looking up at the ceiling, tracking the flicker of light from the fire that danced along the dark oak. "You're certainly confusing but if I've been sure of anything in my life it's that you love wine. Especially the wine from this Inn." His gaze shifted from the ceiling towards Blaire, watching the light flicker over her skin and her nest of wet hair bundled up on the pillows.

Hal propped himself up onto an elbow while rolling onto his side and for a while he was quiet, he just looked at her with a hint of a smile on his lips. The drip of rain water no longer registered in his ears, his focus solely on her. He shifted again, slowly, moving to brush a stray strand of wet hair from her cheek behind her ear. His hand remained and his thumb grazed over her cheek while he leaned down to press his lips against hers. That kiss was different, affectionate rather than full of desire although desire was still very much evident.

The kiss was brief and he parted from her to press his lips to her forehead before finally laying on his back once more with his arms above the first. "I. Wouldn't. Dream. Of. It" He mimicked her tone before he finally shut his eyes and within minutes drifted off to sleep.

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Blaire gave his arm a slight flick before settling down under the fur to try and warm herself, parts of her body were still wet, but she didn't have the energy to get up and fully dry like Hal.

She closed her eyes and could hear Hal shifting, then feel his hand brush a stray hair away from her skin. She was a little surprised when he leant down for a kiss, but he came in so slow that it gave her plenty of time to prepare.

She returned the kiss gently and smiled lightly as he moved onto his back, so is this what it's like to have a husband? She thought to herself while looking over at Hal in thought.

She listened to the rain tapping along the window for a few moments, waiting for Hal to sleep before slowly moving her body next to his, placing her arm over his stomach gently and wrapping her leg around his loosely. Finally, her head rested gently against his shoulder, careful not to wake him before she too drifted into a drunken sleep.